Abs

[Romeoguy62]

I just started doing my abs, I have always had to much fat to see them so never worried about them. Well, I have begun running and doing abs lately and I was wondering what you all do. I bought one of those ab balls-waste of money. How much time do you all spend per day on abs? What exercises/reps/sets would you reccommend for a beginner. I appreciate it guys!

[nitro_fusion]

Well you want to train heavy becos you want to build strength and mass in your abs, so if you want a huge six pack, don't train for endurance (high reps) do decline situps and then when your fine with those, do them with a weight disk held to your chest and work up. Just what I do.

[Romeoguy62]

How many stes/reps? 4x25 good?

[Papi93]

I've found an exercise that makes the stability ball worthwhile. Perform heavy db crunches on the ball with your feet anchored with dumbbells that weigh twice what you have under your chin. Get a good pre-stretch, by dropping back over the ball, and crunch. This is the best crunch exercise that I have ever done, hands down!

[Papi93]

Ab Wheel or Power Wheel 2 - 4 sets of 8-12 reps - Hip Flexors with the Abdominals stabilizing

Heavy DB Side Bends - 4 sets of 8-12 reps - Lateral Flexion

Heavy DB Crunches on Stability Ball - 4 sets of 8-12 reps - Trunk Flexions

[Flexor]

Heavy db side bends will add mass to the obliques and possibly take away from your waistline, especially since the lower obliques attach over the hip muscle. However if you think you could do with a little more thickness on your sides then do them.

striker93 those are nice exercises, but I'd also add decline crunches as you can get a really good squeeze at the top. Those along with the stability ball I think are great.

[Papi93]

[QUOTE=Flexor]Heavy db side bends will add mass to the obliques and possibly take away from your waistline, especially since the lower obliques attach over the hip muscle. However if you think you could do with a little more thickness on your sides then do them.

If he is training for performance, rather than aesthetics, I would train the obliques in a frontal plane or transverse plane. I caught a post that he wants to improve his flexibility by following a stretching program. I figured he wasn't just concerned about "bodybuilding".

[D7M]

skriker93 had some great exercises, but they won't do a thing if your diet and cardio isn't in check. no substitute for hard work. good luck!

[lilchef14]

Doing heavy side bends will only increase the mass that he has on his obliques! Yes he needs to strengthen them... but he will only be making his life harder by added mass. I thought the same thing as all yall, but its hurt me over all. If he is looking for a good oblique exercise: broomstick twists/ side bends off the rack.

[Romeoguy62]

Thanks Nitro, Striker and Flexor, I'm gonna (try) to stick to it with my abs, they have always been a weak point for me.

[bignatt]

I vote for the ab ball that thing is pretty good

[max2extreme]

i second that, i love the ab ball.

[Papi93]

Doing heavy side bends will only increase the mass that he has on his obliques! Yes he needs to strengthen them... but he will only be making his life harder by added mass. I thought the same thing as all yall, but its hurt me over all. If he is looking for a good oblique exercise: broomstick twists/ side bends off the rack.

Many strength trainers develop injuries, in the long run, because they only train certain bodyparts, not the body as a whole. The obliques, along with the rectus abdominus, help stabilize the pelvis in a neutral position. When neglecting the frontal and transverse planes of movement, you are asking for an injury to your lower back (down the road). Endless, weightless reps for the obliques will cause a muscle imbalance. I'd rather have an injury-free lower back, later in life, than atrophied obliques, in my youth. Just my 2 cents .

[pyschomav]

So striker your saying doing weighted abs workouts are best in the long run? "or else youll have back problems later on in life?"

[Papi93]

So striker your saying doing weighted abs workouts are best in the long run? "or else youll have back problems later on in life?"

It's similar to the trainee you only trains chest and ignores the upper back musculature. Sooner or later their shoulders will start rounding forward and shoulder problems will arise. If you desire being injury-free, later in life, train for muscle balance between opposing groups.

You don't have to train with weighted ab and oblique exercises, if you are training your lower back with bodyweight-only resistance. In this instance, you wouldn't need external resistance for abdominals and obliques.

[Giantz11]

It's similar to the trainee you only trains chest and ignores the upper back musculature. Sooner or later their shoulders will start rounding forward and shoulder problems will arise. If you desire being injury-free, later in life, train for muscle balance between opposing groups.

You don't have to train with weighted ab and oblique exercises, if you are training your lower back with bodyweight-only resistance. In this instance, you wouldn't need external resistance for abdominals and obliques.

Amen, I didn't realize this until I was told I had internal rotation of my shoulders be cause my chest was too strong. I really should have emphasized upper back alot more. Learned my lesson from that one.